U.S. Rep. Chris Gibson has a commanding 16-point lead over his Democratic Party challenger Julian Schreibman in the newly drawn 19th Congressional District according to a poll released Friday by the Siena Research Institute.

In the new district, which encompasses less than half of his current district, Gibson has a 52-36 point lead among likely voters with 11 percent still undecided, according to the poll.

Gibson, who is running for his second term in Congress, has a 35-point lead in Montgomery, Schoharie, Greene, Columbia and Rensselaer counties, a 14-point lead in Southern Broome, Delaware and Otsego counties, and a 2-point lead in Ulster and Dutchess counties, the portion of the district where Schreibman is from and where he worked as a prosecutor, according to the poll.

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"With 46 days until Election Day, Gibson has a strong 16-point lead over Schreibman as he tries to win re-election in a district where he does not currently represent a majority of the voters. In the portion of the district that he now represents he has nearly a two-to-one lead, and leads by five points in the new portion of the district," said Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg.

Greenberg said 83 percent of Republicans in the district favor Gibson and that he leads by 16 points among independents. Schreibman is ahead 69-21 percent among Democrats.

"Schreibman is unknown to nearly two-thirds of voters, including more than half who currently say they are voting for him," Greenberg said. "Those who do have an opinion are evenly divided between viewing him favorably and unfavorably.

Voters think Gibson will do a better job handling the issues that are most important to them -- such as jobs, the deficit, health care, the war in Afghanistan, education and taxes -- by between 13 and 22 points.

Other findings include:

n President Barack Obama leads Mitt Romney among likely voters in the district 49 to 45.

n Voters by a count of 50 to 46 would like to see Obama's health care reforms repealed.

n Twenty-one percent, 59-38, more voters in the district agree with Obama's proposal to roll back tax cuts implemented by the Bush Administration on those making more than $250,000.

n Fifty-eight percent of voters in the district think the country is headed in the wrong direction while 34 percent think it's on the right track.

n Forty-one percent are closer to Obama's position on insuring Social Security remains solvent while 34 percent are closer to Romney's position.

n Forty-six percent say they are closer to Obama's position on Medicare while 35 percent say they are closer to Romney's.

The poll was conducted by calling 635 likely voters on Sept. 17 and 18. It carries a margin of error of +/- 3.9 percentage points.